Recent

Look at all the great pictures, so much joy! Especially that person in the picture with the green fat bike and the rock shox fork up in the air, look at that smile! Got to say, took my buddy's fat bike for a ride once, it was a ton of fun, fat tires=big smiles

Be a responsible rider, a lot of people still have an image of MTB'ers as destructive & out of control. Don't skid around the corners, dam that irritates me, you're not at the bike park, don't lock that back brake up okay there chief? Always yield to those dam horses, yeah it sucks, but hey, at least you didn't scare the animal and you didn't get kicked in the face and the person riding didn't get bucked off. Most walkers I run into are pleasant and generally stop to let you pass by because they realize you're going to be moving at a much quicker pace than them. We all know that downhill traffic is supposed to yield to uphill traffic, but we also know that 95% of the time we are going to yield to the guy coming downhill.
Try and help maintain your trails, pick up some trash you see along your ride, maybe spend a half hour with a hand saw clearing some downed limbs, all that little stuff helps out a lot. State parks are generally much more open to MTB than national parks. Don't go ride in areas designated wilderness areas, I know here in the states, all designated wilderness is off limits to MTB but it's perfectly fine for you to go ride around on a giant horse, trampling the trails leaving huge dumps everywhere which really sucks because you know as a responsible rider you won't cause anyway near as much damage as that animal. I think this may slowly change in time. Personally, I'd love to see something like a "responsible rider course" available through the forest service, complete the course, pay for a wilderness permit and be able to ride all those glorious trails. I'd gladly shell out 50 or 100 bucks for something like that.
MTB is just the greatest, I wish you all happy trails, ride on!

I do share a lot of rides, I also don't share a lot of rides. It's always great getting inquiries from people who are curious about mtb, or want to know about a new spot, or want to go and ride with you, ask you how you set up your bike, etc. Riding with music is something that I used to never do, however recently I started playing music on my iphone and have it zipped up in the top pocket of my camelback right by my head, no earphones. I don't have a preference for or against music on a ride, whatever I feel like that day.
My first MTB road trip a few years ago lasted 4 months, I mainly used online reviews to find trails to ride. Back in June, I did my next mtb road trip, 2 months this time, and I did all of my trail hunting through locals and the LBS. There's so many great resources available now, it's easy to find what you want to ride. Stop in to the local bike shop, ask them about the local trails, tell them what you are looking to ride, listen, most people are happy to boast about their local trails and often times they will recommend something that you might not have been expecting to ride and it turns out to be fantastic. I've actually met people along the trip on trails, rode with them, and then once I get to the area they live in later on during the trip, go ride with them there. I've made it a point to visit & ride with these people on subsequent trips after this as well!

As I've been riding for over 20 years, here's a few thoughts:
I ride alone 98% of the time, from small local loops, to way out in the middle of no where back country journeys when I am road tripping. I am very comfortable riding a few inches away from thousand foot drops, but when you ride alone, it's more about knowing your limitations and keeping it in your comfort zone. Yes there is a big potential for getting hurt and not having someone there to assist you, but I've always found the more people you go with, the more chance there is for something to go wrong. I enjoy riding alone as much as I do with buddies. MTB is like therapy for my soul, when you're alone you can go at your own pace, when you're with your buddies, that's the time to try new obstacles and race around, enjoy the company & social aspect of it.
26"-650B-29", old vs new equipment: I bought a 2014 carbon enduro, I made it a point to not get a bigger wheel, will the next new bike I buy, another 6 or 7 years in the future have bigger wheels, most likely! I still have my '07 enduro, 26" wheels, 2x9 drivetrain, and a healthy 35.25 lbs. The '07 still excels in a few areas over the '14 and there are areas where the '14 shines vs the '07. As for things like a 1x11 drivetrain, the new air shocks, dropper post, other goodies, after riding around on the new bike for the past few months, I'd love to get a 1x setup on the old bike and remove my coil shock, I know I can re-do the old bike and have another great fantastic setup that is the best of everything. That time will come, but what I am getting at is new things I was skeptical of at first, I ended up being really pleased with.